It’s possible I may have the distinction of being the only person who’s been reading Bon Appetit for 30 years without trying a single recipe. Well, that’s a small exaggeration. I’ve tried a handful for better or worse, but my kids have always told me, “You’re better at the basics than when you try to go gourmet, Mom.”

Two of the most annoying words ever spoken by kids with great imaginations, plenty to play with, and backyards that beckon: “I’m booorrrred.” Hot, bored kids can have a chilling effect on any parent’s mood.

Water is a natural, plentiful mood elevator. That is, unless it’s preceded by a question or request along the lines of, “Please take a shower and wash your hair,” or “Did you load the dishwasher?” So let it flow in novel ways when the heat is on.

Summer at my daughter’s house can be counted in watermelons. On any hot day, she can be counted on to bring out a giant bowl of cut-up watermelon chunks or slices (which, by the way, when put on top of a vegetable steamer placed in the bottom of the bowl, will not turn mushy).

Email is down. Deadlines are passing. Errands piling up. Book group coming. I am s-t-r-e-s-s-e-d!The go-to solution? Haagen Dazs dulce de leche or maybe a bag of Twizzlers or a handful my daughter’s cookies pulled out of the freezer and shoved into the microwave for a quickie defrost. Bad choices all. I would never pledge to purge them from my diet, but they really are really not a great prescription for stress busting. The sugar rush is great, but when your blood sugar rate drops, stress hormones are released.